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Hate Floats
Hate Floats is the second episode in the second season of The Venture Bros. Storyline The uncostumed Number Twenty-one (also known as Gary) is sitting at his computer when the phone rings. Answering it with "Atomic Comic Collection Connection", he finds that it is Number Twenty-four calling. Before the two get a chance to talk, The Monarch calls, and 21 puts him on three-way. The Monarch, who is sitting in the sideways-standing charred remains of the Cocoon, instructs the two to gather the others and meet at the cocoon. The henchmen reply that everyone else had joined Monstroso and that they are the last two remaining henchmen. In a heated speech, the Monarch demands that the cocoon be fully operational and fully manned by the time he finishes with his shower. While the episode's soundtrack swells with "Mars, the Bringer of War" by Gustav Holst (with 21 humming along with the song!), Twenty-one dons his old Monarch henching uniform while Twenty-four arrives to pick him up. At the Venture compound, the clones of Dean and Hank are awoken for the first time, and are told that it's their sixteenth birthday despite the date inconsistency on their ID cards. Meanwhile, Twenty-one and Twenty-four are out advertising the "sexy, action-packed lifestyle of the professional henchman" in an urban area when several gangsters and thugs show up, attracted by Twenty-one's promises of weapons and rides (the Flying Cocoon). The newly recruited henchmen arrive at the Cocoon while Twenty-one and Twenty-four manage to get it functional and floating. The Monarch is shocked to learn that his henchmen displayed some level of competency and actually did what he told them to do. He reveals his new plan, "Operation: Get Back Dr. Girlfriend" to his new henchmen, who appear indifferent to the Monarch’s plight. At the mall, Dr. Venture takes Dean to get his surprise birthday present. Much to Dean’s dismay, the present turns out be a jumpsuit, which Dr. Venture insists is a "speed suit", clothing for the "science-minded man who knows both comfort and ease and demands them from his clothing." Incidentally, Phantom Limb and Dr. Girlfriend happen to be shopping at the very same mall, with the Monarch’s cocoon tailing them in the parking lot. Limb prepares for a dinner party, to which Dr. Girlfriend appears apathetic and leaves to get a snack. As Dr. Girlfriend leaves the food court, she is confronted by The Monarch, who attempts to convince her to return with him. As the two talk, he receives a transmission from Twenty-four, who just spotted Brock and Hank shopping together. Angered that the Monarch spends more time with his henchmen and plotting against Dr. Venture than with her, Dr. Girlfriend starts to leave. When Phantom Limb arrives at the scene and charges at the two, the Monarch panics and tranquilizes Dr. Girlfriend, then spreads his wings and takes flight with her in tow. Elsewhere, the Monarch's new henchmen arrive to ambush the Venture family. A fight breaks out, causing Dr. Venture's right eyeball to be knocked out of its socket, resulting in globe luxation. The fight escalates until Brock is shot by one of the henchmen. Meanwhile, the commotion causes the Monarch to falter and drop Dr. Girlfriend (who lands on Hank and Dean). Mall cops arrive on the scene, forcing the Monarch and his henchmen to retreat with Dr. Venture in tow. Phantom Limb arrives in time to see the Monarch retreating and swears vengeance, but then sees the severely bleeding Brock lying on the ground. Brock awakes in the Lair of the Phantom in bandages. Phantom Limb gives an impassioned and dramatic "Welcome to Hell" speech to Brock, revealing his mistaken impression that the Monarch has kidnapped both Dr. Girlfriend and the Venture family. With a common enemy, the two of them agree to team up, even developing a mutual grudging admiration of sorts. At the Cocoon, the Monarch is lecturing his henchmen about being "hotshot upstarts" and using real guns. However, when he tries to force them to relinquish their guns the henchmen mutiny, imprisoning the Monarch, Twenty-one, Twenty-four, and Doctor Venture. Back at the mall, Dr. Girlfriend hotwires Brock's Charger and orders Hank to drive, saying that she doesn’t drive men. The Venture brothers are surprised that Dr. Girlfriend knows their names, as well as Brock, and Dean asks if she is their mother. This claim angers Dr. Girlfriend, but she does not deny it at first. At the Lair of the Phantom, Phantom Limb uses a muscle growth accelerator to restore Brock's muscles. He warns Brock that what they are doing is to be kept secret, as if word of it were leaked to the Guild he would be kicked out. In jail, Twenty-One reveals that he has a secret cache of weapons in his room, which coincidentally happens to be directly above. Using an air duct and WD-40, the four manage to climb over up into the room. They survey Twenty-one's "weapon stash", which consists mainly of toys and collector’s items, including a Lord of the Rings sword (mint condition, still in box), a Captain America shield, Magneto's helmet, Hulk noise-making gloves, and a Spider-Man uniform, among other things. Back at the Lair of the Phantom, Phantom Limb and Brock equip themselves for the upcoming fight while they argue about the masculinity of Dr. Girlfriend. The two strap on backpack helicopters and take off. Dr. Girlfriend instructs Hank on where to go, following a tracer that she implanted on the Monarch when the two dated. Hank remains shocked at the fact that he is driving, while Dean persists in asking if Dr. Girlfriend is their mother. Meanwhile, Brock and Phantom Limb have landed in the cocoon and swap stories, techniques, and moves as they take out the guards. The two take joy in their work, the only common ground the two of them seem to share. Suddenly, Dr. Girlfriend and the boys burst through the side of the cocoon in the car, landing to find Brock, Limb, and a slew of injured henchmen. In the adjacent room, the Monarch and others prepare for the big breakout, with the Monarch armed with the Hulk punching gloves, Dr. Venture with the Magneto helmet and a deck of Magic: The Gathering cards, Twenty-four with the Lord of the Rings sword (which is still in its original package) and Twenty-one with the Captain America shield. The four rush out of the room weapons swinging only to meet Brock, Limb, and the others. After the credits, the Monarch (the first one to leave the room) is shown savagely beaten, presumably by Brock and Phantom Limb. Dr. Girlfriend convinces Limb to neither kill nor press charges on the barely breathing Monarch, saying he only did it out of love for her. Brock makes another comment about Dr. Girlfriend, and Limb quickly fells him with a tranquilizer dart. Quotes *'Twenty-one': We were following orders! You can't yell at us for following orders. Twenty-four: Or kill us for following orders. *'Twenty-one': Henchman twenty-eight! Front and center! Twenty-eight: You want me? You roll your big ass over here. And I done told you, my name is Number One! *'The Monarch': There's just so many buttons ... so .. so many buttons! *'Dean': Don't say it. Hank: You look like the mayor of Candy Land. *'Phantom Limb': I have removed the bullet. And three others, a blowgun dart, two shark's teeth, a tip of a bayonet, a twisted paperclip, and a meager handful of buckshot. You may want to learn how to duck. *'Twenty-one': Gentlemen, choose your weapons. Twenty-four: Is this them? Twenty-one: Are these they. Twenty-four: Who talks like that? Monarch: Let me through, I'm the leader here, I'll distribute the... wha. (uneasy pause) Are these they? *'Monarch': You f--king idiot! What the hell are we supposed to do with this crap? Make them laugh so hard they blow malt liquor out of their noses? *'Dr. Venture:' What am I supposed to do with these, tell their fortunes? Twenty-one: They are Magic: The Gathering cards, not Tarot cards. You can toss them at their heads. Well, you catch a corner with one of those and they'll know what hit them. *'Hank': Who are all these people? Dean: Are they all mommy's other boyfriends? Dr. Girlfriend: Stop calling me your f--king mommy! Trivia *The title to this episode is an allusion to the 1998 Sandra Bullock movie Hope Floats. *While Dr. Venture is correct that there is in fact an article of men's clothing known as a "speed suit," it is actually a set consisting of a short sleeve or sleeveless shirt and shorts, usually made of vinyl. Despite his protests, both Venture's mauve outfit and the one he buys for Dean are in fact either short-sleeved jumpsuits (as the store attendant refers to them) or short-sleeved boilersuits. *Several background characters seen in the mall are cariactures of the cast and crew. *The sequence in the begining of the episode in which 21 enters his closet to change is a parody of the Batman Forever suit-change sequence. *As the Monarch carries the drugged Dr. Girlfriend through the air over the food court, he recites lyrics to "Can You Read My Mind?" in his mind, just as Lois Lane did when being carried by Superman on their "date" in Superman: The Movie. *This is the first episode where the Monarch's wings are shown to be functional (at least as gliders) rather than just a part of his costume. *When Hank mentions 10 o'clock and 2 o'clock when placing his hands on the steering wheel, this is taken directly from the pilot episode of Miami Vice. *21's closet contains a Red Skull "Venture Bros." logo t-shirt as well as Dean's hover shoes. *Brock had previously stated that he hates and avoids using guns whenever possible. However, in this episode he uses a net firing gun and seems quite amused with it; he may prefer to avoid conventional firearms but enjoy "supervillain weaponry." *Before the credits, as the screen fades to black, a Wilhelm scream can be heard. *The end of the episode, with the screen tinting sepia as the Monarch and company rush out of 24's bedroom, is a parody of the ending of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Category:The Venture Bros. episodes